Good crop of strawberries, hay as P.E.I. growing season off to strong start

P.E.I. farmers have been basking in an excellent mix of sunshine and rain.

Some are already getting ready to cut their second crop of hay, given the favourable weather through the spring and early summer.

Robert Godfrey, executive director of the P.E.I. Federation of Agriculture, said the Island is a long way from harvesting its major crops, but some growers are already reaping the benefits.

"You can talk to strawberry growers who will tell you that this is the best crop of berries they've seen in years. So the weather so far has been kind," said Godfrey.

"The best hay crop they've seen in the last four or five years, both in terms of quality, in terms of yield. So that's really good news."

The biggest concern among strawberry growers right now is finding pickers to harvest the crop, he said.

The weather has not been good the last two years, said Godfrey.

Last year a drought started early, and two years ago there was a lot of rain through the winter. The rain froze in the fields, leading to winter kill.

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